Happy Atheist

I'm so glad I found this web site! I feel more grounder knowing I'm accepted because of my way thinking by a group that is way ahead of the game of life. I have a lot of opinions and no one to talk to about religion or lack there of. I read a book named "And man created God". After reading it I was even more sure there is no god. I think the bible is a fairy tale written to make people feel guilty about everything and everything. Any suggestions on other books to read?

I got the book "God is not good" and found it boring. I prefer to just study anthropology. I am a Jared Diamond fan.He nails early civilization developement. I started with "Guns germs and steal" and it took me 6 years to read it. (I only read at airports and doctors offices and red lights) When I got done I couldn't get enough of his writings. They are all good. Mankind is so interesting.

The Belief Instinct by Jesse Bering. The best theory I have read as to why we (as a species) seem so hard wired for god stuff. A fun read. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. I almost didn't read it because it is 20 years old (out of date!) until a read a book review on a collection of essays celebrating its 20th anniversary. When phrases like "The most important work on evolution since Darwin" are being thrown around by PhD biologists, you know this isn't your run of the mill popular science book. It is also very readable. As jb2013 mentioned, Jared Diamond is a sure bet also. I loved his stuff.

I'm a huge fan of vitriolic attacks against religion and the religious, a la Dawkins and Hitchens, but, in my opinion, no one can match Robert Wright in terms of level-headed, analysis-neutral evaluation of the history of religion, and his book 'The Evolution of God', is in many ways more devastating to religion than any persuasive book. I feel it's very good for me, as a strident 'militant' atheist, to have a firm grasp of the (perhaps intentionally) somewhat vague history of religion, so that I have my bases covered when people ask me questions about it. I also happen to believe that you can never change people's minds by telling them what to think; you simply have to present them with evidence and let them come to their own conclusions. This is such a book; I can't imagine any monotheist believer reading this and coming away with their faith in tact.